WORD FROM THE WIFE

I hope you had a fun and busy holiday(s) like we did. We had about 17 people and 4 dogs for several days to help us celebrate and enjoy each meal and activity.

We had a pug, a shih tzu (both dressed in their fancy sweaters and finery), and two mutts (totally naked) and, thankfully, they all got along fine (the dogs, not the people— just kidding).

Everybody was in a pretty good mood (maybe because we were so well fed) and we enjoyed all the busyness. Mostly we were busy cooking and cleaning up after cooking and eating. But everybody pitched in and helped, so it wasn’t too bad.

What did we eat all those days? So glad you asked.

We devoured a ham with all the trimmings, boudin sausage from Louisiana with toasted bread, a giant rib roast, dressing, Kyle brought seafood from Houston and we had boiled shrimp, shrimp scampi, calamari with marinara sauce, hot crab dip (recipe follows), salad, every kind of cheese and cracker you can imagine, guacamole, chocolate cake, cookies and candy and that’s all I can think of right now.

Needless to say, none of us lost any weight during the holidays!

—pc—

Bill and I tried to walk some of that off on Monday morning and we try to remember to take a plastic bag so we can pick up the aluminum cans for recycling. A lot of people had fun during the holidays and threw their beer and/or soda cans out in someone’s yard or just dropped them right on the street. We don’t mind doing this so much—B. F. Cook takes cans to be recycled for our church— but I wonder just what kind of slob throws cans or fast-food containers for somebody else to pick up! Unless people are coming from out of town to throw away their trash, Rockdale has a fair share of them. We filled a grocery-size bag just in one walk.

—pc—

Here’s the promised Hot Crab Dip recipe. It’s easy to make and would be a perfect dish for New Year’s celebrating. Toast some thinly sliced baguettes or other bread for dipping or spreading.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat together the cream cheese, mayonnaise, lemon juice, water, onions and parsley until smooth. Mix in the Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco and horseradish. Fold in the almonds (if using) and crab meat. Place in an oven-proof casserole (a pie plate works fine) and bake until bubbly and heated through, about 20 minutes. Serve with crackers or toast.